Another amazing day filled with a lot of fun both inside and outside of the classroom. One group took a trek through the forest, bringing their adventurous spirits and toboggans. The Sun was covered in an icy haze and the children debated whether it was the moon or the Sun. As their walk continued and the sky cleared, they soon discovered that they had been looking at the Sun.
We knew we had to leave some toboggans for the other classes, so before we headed into the woods, we figured out how many sleds we should borrow for the morning. The children decided that if we took two of the big three-seat blue sleds and two of the small two-seat red sleds, all ten students would have a place to ride.
On our walk, we found two places to slide. After repeated melting and freeze ups, the first hill was too fast and slippery, but the second spot was just right! The children took several rides down the hill while other classmates sprayed the snow with coloured water from the spray bottles we had brought.
On our way back to the school, the children found an opening in an area of dense brush that looked like a good place to play for a while. We noticed scat and several different sets of footprints that told us rabbits, deer, and other wildlife had been in the area. We also found a pile of feathers that we decided might be the remains of a bird eaten by a predator, likely a hawk or other bird of prey. We felt sad for a moment, but we remembered that many creatures in nature need to hunt for food. What a wonderful morning of outdoor play and learning!
The inside group continued to expand their knowledge of planets, craters, and orbits. Dropping different sized marbles into a platter of sand, we were able to visualize how craters are formed. We continue to learn more and more about the similarities and differencing between our planets as well as their ordinal position within our solar system.
Since this week's letter was "O", we began creating our own map of the solar system by drawing eight O's (representing eight planetary orbits) on a black sheet of construction paper and then numbering them one through eight.
We also continued working on our space mixed-medium art scene by adding planets that would come before or after the planet we had landed on. We cut coloured construction paper into a circle (ensuring that the colour matched the planets we were representing) and then used chalk to add depth to these planets. Next we added 3D stickers (rockets, aliens, stars, spaceships) as another type of medium.
Before our space exploration began, we had asked the children what they were interested in learning. We had many questions about how astronauts work in space. Therefore, we watched a Youtube video about how astronauts get ready in the morning, why water conservation is important, as well as the importance of exercise and how astronauts exercise in space. This was a great video that extends to how we should conserve water, keep it clean, and ensure that we are exercising daily.
A month ago Gobo (our classroom puppet) lost his pet lion, Léo. We just received a message from Léo that he somehow ended up in a rocket ship in outer space. He is a little scared and has asked for our help to get him safely home. He told us that when he looked out the window he saw a red planet with white on the top and bottom of the planet. (N.B. This is a very amateur video, but please enjoy!)
The children quickly figured out that he must be headed for Mars and they discussed what we need to tell him via video:
-the planet you are heading towards is Mars
-it's cold and rocky on Mars
-Mars is the 4th planet from the Sun
-you need to fly back towards the Sun because Earth is the 3rd planet
-Earth will look blue, green, and white and is a rocky planet
-if you hit the asteroid belt you are going the wrong direction
-if you see Jupiter (a gaseous planet) you have gone too far and in the wrong direction
-you may want to find the ISS and ask someone there to help you
-we will try and build a rocket ship so we can come and get you
-we need to find someone with super powers to get you back home
-we need to make a map of the solar system
-we also need to make you a map of Earth because we don't want you to land in Russia
As you can see the children came up with very good ideas about getting Léo back to Earth.
During our big block of free play the children were engaged in a plethora of activities: fort building, block play, board games, figuring out how to build air rockets, medical clinic, painting, and creative designs using recycled materials. The children continue to do an amazing job getting our classroom back in order after big activity time. We have also heard that they are great helpers at recess, assisting the supervisor with bringing the outdoor play equipment to the bunker. We are so proud of "our"/your children!
Enjoy the weekend with your children!